(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mini plane (i.e. a small sized cutting tool) used for preparing a specimen for microscopic analysis.
The mini plane is used for obtaining a cutting for use as a specimen for microscopic analysis of solid materials such as metal, plastics, rubber and the like by thinly planing away the solid surface. By using diamond as a material for a cutting blade of the mini plane, it can easily plane hard solid materials such as stainless steel to prepare a specimen for microscopic analysis.
(b) Description of Related Art
According to a conventional method of preparing a specimen for microscopic analysis of solid materials, a knife is used to partially remove the surface of a solid material to obtain a specimen for microscopic analysis.
In the conventional method, it is difficult to obtain a specimen of a fixed thickness from a flat surface of a solid material for microscopic analysis. This problem is particularly remarkable when the solid material is hard.